Which does everyone think is the better way to crosstrain, to study something like BJJ or Judo individually, then add Muay Thai, then add whatever else you want, and bring it together yourself, or go to a "Mixed Martial Arts" or "Vale Tudo" instructor who already knows these arts and can teach them to you as a coherent package?

I can see advantages and disadvantages in both, but I don't have much experience cross-training, so I'll let others answer first.

-------------------------
Clap your hands everybody,
if you got what it takes
'Cause I'm Kurtis Blow
and I want you to know
that these are the breaks!

"The morning glory blooms for an hour. It differs not at heart from the giant pine, which lives for a thousand years."

I am an add-on synthesis guy, but I can see an advantage to learning a MMA such as from a Vale Tudo instructor, or from a JKD w/ BJJ (many schools like this now) instructor. The advantage being that you learn a core of proven techniques faster than by learning several styles and discarding the excess (which is my personal route, and still going.)

grappling/striking intermeshes well... mostly because you'll think to use one where there is a hole in the other, like a knee in side control from using a knee before, or elbow in a mount, and the many, many, MANY things you can do in a cinch - which needs striking AND grappling knowledge. It also gives more to throw at your opponent so they don't know how to react. Defending from grappling can often open up a quick strike, and vice versa.

That, and if they're a bad striker, strike with them and don't let them grapple and vice/versa is a strategy you can use too.

&amp;lt;Me&amp;gt; John, what do you know about Zen Buddhism? &amp;lt;John&amp;gt; *smacks me*
&amp;lt;John&amp;gt; I'd have to smack you sometime...

Edited by - Nihilanthic on February 21 2003 16:05:02

Katana, on 540 kicks: "Hang from a ceiling fan with both hands. Flail your feet out and ask people to walk into you as you hit their face."

That's one of the things I thought of, the advantage of learning synthesized would be that your instructor would know what moves from one art exposed you to moves from another or what moves between styles mixed together well.

Conversely, a disadvantage might be that you're learning techniques that worked specifically for your instructor, or his instructor, rather than you, but this sounds like it could be overcome without much trouble.

-------------------------
Clap your hands everybody,
if you got what it takes
'Cause I'm Kurtis Blow
and I want you to know
that these are the breaks!

"The morning glory blooms for an hour. It differs not at heart from the giant pine, which lives for a thousand years."

Yeah, even if you learn a synthesis, there will probably be stuff that you're not well suited for, and other stuff that works really well. There's no rule that says you can't pare down and add on to a synthesis as well as a TMA to achieve your personal style.